Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Fate
by Jakeun Kangajii
Summary: Fate is a curious force. One minute it's throwing everything against you, and then the next minute it is holding your hand the entire way. There is a reason why you shouldn't depend on it, as a certain red-haired demoness finds out.
1. Chapter 1

No own anything here guys.

Prologue

Fate is a curious force. One moment it seems to be on your side, the next it uses everything it has against you. One can never know what fate has in store for an individual, even if said individual's fate is thought to be sealed. After all, what can fate do to a person that resided in Hell?

These were my thoughts as I wandered the plains of death. You would think that Hell is laden with fire and demons, but these assumptions were wrong. Hell was gray, flat, and all around _boring_. I suppose this was their idea of a punishment, forced to forever wander these plains alone with nothing interesting to do. Well, that's a lie. You could become bitter over your fate, allowing your anger to steam and boil, wanting nothing but revenge. But what good will come of it? Unless a spirit medium channels you for whatever reason, you cannot act upon your wrath. All there is to do is walk.

It's funny how one can get used to circumstances. It's also funny that when as soon as you get used to it, something completely unexpected happens. For example, just as I was used to the fact that I will forever be alone, I found that I wasn't. For in front of me was a beast. It was large and pure white, with a large wheel around its waist. It had also four legs, each ending at a point. It was the head I focused on though, which was not hard to do. At the top is what I suppose is its mane, long and flowing, though how I do not know since there was no wind at all. Its face was shrouded in grey, and two brilliant green eyes peered at me. You can understand why I had to take a step back, the beast was massive. It then spoke to me.

"Dahlia Hawthorne, murderer of Valerie Hawthorne, Doug Swallows, part of the reason for Terry Fawles' suicide and Misty Fey's murder, thief of her father's diamond, a manipulator of love, poisoner of Diego Armando, and an all around $# #." it said. "You have paid for your crimes with your death and subsequent failures for your revenge. All thanks to your cousin, the deceased Mia Fey, and former boyfriend Phoenix Wright." Its tone was that of a mother scolding her child and telling them why they were caught. It stung so much, as it reminded me of _her_, Mia Fey.

"Who are you and what do you want with me?" I replied, my own voice bitter. "I don't need you telling me how I failed, I KNOW." The beast was silent for a moment, and then it laughed.

"At least it didn't quell that sharp tongue of yours. I am Arceus, the Original One, the Creator of the Universe."

"So you're God."

"In a sense, I'm a God." It laughed again. My initial fears turned into annoyance.

"What do you have to laugh about!?" I yelled. "Have you come here to mock me!?"

"Good Heavens no!" Arceus exclaimed. "I've yet to answer your second question, but humor me for a moment."

"What is it?" I grumbled. I had no reason to act sweet and innocent; it was plain that it knew of my past.

"Say if you had a chance to be reborn, to start a new life in a place where you can never meet those you have wronged and have wronged you, a chance to not be a failure, to live again, would you?" My annoyance turned to confusion. What was it going on about? To live again? To start over? It sounded much too good to be true.

"Why do you ask?"

"Just answer the question sweetheart." Sweetheart?

"Of course, anyone would accept that chance. Now answer my question as to why you're here." I had a suspicion as to what it was.

"It's obvious, isn't it? I am here to give you that chance." It looked rather pleased with itself, having to finally reach this point.

"May I ask why you believe I deserve it? It seems odd that you would come to me with this… incredible offer. Or is it pity that had you give this offer?" It's not that I was complaining, it was that for someone like me, there had to be in a catch. The beast looked at me straight in the eyes, a feat impressive and intimidating due to its sheer size.

"I do not pity you. You deserved the punishment given to you for your crimes. You did not however deserve the reasons why you became the way you are," it growled. "Let's be honest, your parents were terrible. However, both of your sisters loved you very much, and it is normally unforgivable what you did to them. I am however willing to make an exception. After all, many deserve a second chance, especially with a history like yours."

I, of course, was still skeptical. "Have you given this chance to others beside me?"

"Er…" It looked shifty somehow. "No?"

"So, either I'm the first one, or you wanted me for something specific." I suspected the latter, due to how this conversation was going.

"Look, do you want to live again or not?"

"Of course, but I have my doubts about you."

"You shouldn't. I'm completely trustworthy." There was a pause, and then the sound of someone cracking their knuckles, though how I don't know. "Alright, three things I must tell you. Number 1: Don't be rude. There are those that will beat the crap out of you if you are rude to them, That being said, it's okay to stand up for yourself."

"Wait, I didn't fully agree!" Personally, I didn't think I was rude to others while I was alive either.

"Number 2: Help out as many others as you can. Think of this part as your atonement. Besides, they give you stuff if you help them."

"Okay?" I was also planning on doing that once my revenge was complete. Of course, that failed.

"Number 3 and probably the most important: Do not freak out if you look a little different than normal. Same goes with everyone else. Understood?"

This confused me. "Why would I look different?"

"You'll see. Now, I'm about to revive you, but don't be alarmed if you lose consciousness. It's so you don't feel any pain once you revive. Seriously, it will hurt more than being stabbed." With this, its eyes glowed red and I felt dizzy. "By the way, you know how everyone believed you had no spiritual power?" a faint voice said, obviously belonging to Arceus. "Well, they were sort of right, but you have a different power instead. Good luck!"

"Wait, what!?" I was able to shout before blackness became my sight, and all was still.

Well, I apologize to those who were expecting another chapter for Ghost Trick: Seven Deadly Sins, but I had this idea and it kept nagging me. Also, though Dahlia refers to Arceus as it, I prefer to think of the Creator as a she. Don't ask. Now, what do you think is going to happen? (This should be obvious though.) Review please, and I will get to work on the other story. Sorry and thank you!


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own Ace Attorney or Pokemon. Also, I should say right here that this will be a retelling of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky. And before you guys ask how this is going to work, I planned it already, okay? I hope you enjoy!

* * *

The Beginning of a Strange Friendship

"Hey, are you okay? Come on, wake up! Please don't be dead, that would be really bad if you are!" That voice, high pitched and feminine, was what woke me up.

"Urgh…"

"Oh thank Arceus you're okay!" I opened my eyes to see who was making that really annoying sound. And I stared.

In front of me was this weird, green, reptile creature with a leaf on top of its head. Its crimson red eyes looked relieved at the sight of me awake; the thought of me being dead would have probably terrified her. The mention of Arceus reminded me of two of the tips it gave me.

"May I ask who you are?" I figured saying what would be rude, not to mention that I had to keep it cool. I tried to stand and found that I couldn't. I figured it was because I did just wake up.

"Easy there, you just woke up." I snorted at Captain Obvious. "And my name's Lyra the Chikorita."

"A… Chikorita?" So, that's what she is? I'm assumed by the name that she's female.

"Yep! Hey, are you feeling okay? No amnesia, no tomato in the mirrors, any déjà vu, stuff like that?" she asked me. A quick trip down memory lane said no.

"I'm completely fine, thank you."

"Phew! That's also a relief!" It smiled cheerfully, until said smile turned to confusion. "What's a Vulpix like you doing here anyways?"

"A what? Is that your term for a human?"

"Oh, no no no no. Wait, you're a human?" It was at this point that I realized the both of us had no idea what was going on.

"Erm, yes."

"But that's odd. You look like a normal, albeit attractive, Vulpix." I still had no idea on what a Vulpix actually is, but I apparently look normal enough by their standards. "If you want to check, there's a clear pool of water over there." She pointed her leaf towards said pool.

"Thank you." I walked over there, noticing that I had four legs, which explained why I couldn't walk as normal. I looked into the water and saw something that was not me; a red fox with large brown eyes and a curl of hair on top. Understandably, I screamed.

"Wah! Calm down!" Lyra cried out, startled by my scream.

"Calm down!? You expect me, a human, to calm down after being turned into this!?" A sharp pain suddenly entered my head.

"_Number 3, remember?"_ a voice said. No doubt it was Arceus, the little cretin.

"Okay, deep breath. In… and out." I breathed out, and then yelped as I saw flames coming out of my mouth.

"You're really weird. What's your name anyways?" she asked. I blushed in embarrassment, grateful for the fact that I had red fur.

"My name is Dahlia. I apologize for not giving my name earlier, but I hope you understand, with the whole… you know." I gestured to myself, vaguely aware that this situation is completely ridiculous. I suppose I should have seen it coming.

"Dahlia huh? Well, you don't seem to be bad." Lyra looked satisfied with herself. "Sorry for doubting you. It's just that lately there's been a ton of bad Pokemon." Lyra looked saddened, which quickly turned to shock as she was pushed down, dropping a rock. How she carried that without me knowing I had no idea. A blue bat thing with no eyes flew over. Beside it was a purple ball thing with a skull symbol at the bottom of its face. Said purple ball thing had holes throughout it, with gases coming out.

"Well, I do beg your pardon!" it joyfully exclaimed.

I'll be honest, that was a very cheap thing to do. I, at least, had the decency to push Swallows in the front. Lyra agreed on the former apparently, as she got an indignant look in her eye.

"That was rude! Why'd you do that!?" she cried out. The bat thing laughed.

"Heh-heh-heh, can't figure it out? We wanted to mess with you! Can't face up to us, can you?

"Wh-what?" Lyra stuttered. The bat thing pointed its wing at the rock.

"That's yours, isn't it?" Lyra looked worried.

"Er, well…"

"Sorry kiddo. We'll take that!" the bat cried before taking the rock.

"Aah!" Lyra was seriously just going to let them have the rock without her consent, a fact which reminded me of a certain person I know.

"Woah ho ho!" laughed the purple gas ball. "Not gonna make a move to get it back? What's the matter? Too scared? I didn't expect that you'd be such a big coward!" Lyra looked near to tears, seriously reminding me of that person. "Come on," it turned to its bat friend, "let's get out of here."

The bat nodded his agreement. "See you around, chicken. Heh-heh-heh." With that, they floated/flew off behind us.

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's bullying. Yes, I did terrible things, but was bullying one of them? … Okay, I did some bullying, but not on this level.

"Ohh… what should I do?" Lyra wept, almost to the point of bawling. "That was my personal treasure. It meant the whole world to me. If I lose it…" Lyra let a few tears fall, before her eyes turned to anger and determination. "No! There's no time to waste! Those guys went to that cave behind us, right? It's a dead end! I've got to get it back!"

"So, you're done crying?"

"Not really, but tears won't help me now! Unless it's Fake Tears, but I'm not sure if I can learn that… Anyways, can you please help me?"

"W-wait, what? You want me, a complete stranger, to help you." She nodded. "That has got to be the most stupid idea I've ever heard." Her eyes started to well up again, and fearing my hearing I quickly amended, "But okay, fine. You owe me though."

"R-really? You'll help me? Thank you so much!" she said, her eyes sparkling. She goes through more mood swings than I do, and that is saying something. Still, she is a native, and that means she's bound to know many things about this place. I smiled to myself, mainly because I was finally able to do something, but also because things are starting to look towards my favor.

And so, we head off into what Lyra called the Beach Cave. It's… not a very imaginative name, but it fits.

* * *

Again, I really hope you guys like it. If you want to ask questions, review or PM me, okay? Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own a thing here. Except, maybe Lyra. Maybe. And definitely not her species

* * *

Beach Cave

I almost instantly regretted my decision the moment we went in. It was damp, much to my disliking. I had considered going back when I realized that I couldn't. Which was odd because I swore we just entered through the front. Lyra looked at me with concern.

"You really don't know much, do you?"

"Sadly, no." I muttered. Lyra sighed.

"Well, I owe you one for helping me out with this, so how about I be your guide?" I smiled appreciatively at her. I haven't smiled this much in a long time, and it's genuine. "Well, what is it you don't know?" Lyra asked, snapping me away from my thoughts.

"Almost everything having to do with this place, unfortunately." I sighed. It's a pain being a foreigner.

"All right then, First off, this place we're in is called a Mystery Dungeon. Once we enter, we can't get out unless several requirements are met." At my shocked look she added, "Oh, it's really easy to fulfill said requirements! Sometimes you just need to go to the end, sometimes you need to complete your mission, sometimes you'll even find an item that'll warp you back outside." I breathed out in relief, then yelped again as embers flew out of my mouth. "That," Lyra went on, "is a move called Ember. It's pretty weak for a fire attack, but it's great for beginners like you to learn how to control fire breathing. And since you're a fire type, you'll get something known as STAB, Same Type Attack Bonus."

"Do they really need to call it 'STAB'?"

"I dunno." Lyra shrugged, and then turned her attention to a blue slug creature. It looked somewhat cute, but hostile. "That's a Shellos. You might have some trouble with it seeing as it's a water type."

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"Well, the Pokémon in Mystery Dungeons are usually hostile, so to protect ourselves, we need to knock them out. They'll be fine after a while, so don't worry about them. I'll demonstrate what to do, so hang on."

"Is this the same girl who was unable to take on a bat?" I wondered, as Lyra repeatedly slammed her body against the Shellos. Seriously, who came up with these names? Eventually, the Shellos was thrown back into a wall, its eyes swirling.

"Right, that takes care of that. You might have a little trouble since the majority of the Pokémon here are water types. Still, it wouldn't hurt to try burning them a little."

We went on, finding other creatures like a coral with a face, "That's a Corsola," a purple clam with an abnormally long tongue, "And that's a Shellder," and some sort of shellfish with a brown shell and red eyes, "There's a Kabuto sleeping over there." We knocked out each one that blocked our way, and eventually, a strange feeling washed over me. When I attacked another Shellder, the embers looked slightly more potent. Lyra looked happy, especially when she made leaves out of nothing and started knocking out the hostiles in one hit. "Oh, I just leveled up, and sometimes that means we learn new moves! This is Razor Leaf, and I get STAB from it too, so it's super powerful as of right now!" This interested me, but a Shellos suddenly attacked me. Lyra knocked it out, and it dropped a seed. Rita happily picked it up.

"Um, are you sure you should be eating strange food?" I asked, not knowing what she was going to do with it.

"What? No I'm not going to eat it! This is a Sleep Seed! It does what it implies!" She smiled in triumph. "Those jerks are going to get it!"

"So, we're going to beat the crap out of them while they're asleep?"

"Only one of them!"

"Speaking of them, what are they?" I've been waiting for a chance to ask that.

"Oh, they're Zubat and Koffing. They're both poison types, so I genuinely couldn't fight them before heading in here." She sighed sadly. "It's one of the pains of being of the Grass type, but oh well." We head on, and saw something shining on the ground.

"What is that?" I asked Lyra, redirecting her towards what looks like a small pile of coins. Rita's eyes sparkled, and she dove on top of it.

"YES! Finally some Poké! It's been so long since I've last seen some!" At my startled look, she added, "Sorry, it's just that I'm dirt poor and have eaten nothing but apples. With this, I can finally get something else!"

"Do I even want to know why?"

"Nope. Oh, here's where the dead end should be." Sure enough, we saw those two bickering with each other.

"It's your fault for leading the way, you dumb bat!" cried the Koffing.

"Well, your fault for not telling me sooner, nimrod!" retorted the Zubat. I felt awe at how incredibly _stupid_ some can be.

"Hey, idiots!" Lyra shouted. "Give me back my Relic Fragment! It's my personal treasure, and you have no right to keep it!" The two of them turned to look at us.

"Well, if it isn't the big chicken herself!" replied the Koffing.

"So, this rock is valuable?" the Zubat wondered out loud. I noticed that he was carrying it around his neck, though how he did that I have no clue.

"Who knows, it could be worth more than we initially thought!" laughed the Koffing. "All the more reason not to give it back!"

"You wouldn't dare!" Lyra was at this point shaking with anger.

"If you want to get it back that badly, then try to take it from us! Heh-heh-heh!" laughed the Zubat, already forgetting that his situation isn't that favorable to him anyways.

Suddenly, Lyra growled very loudly, something that I didn't know she could do. Clearly, these imbeciles didn't know either, for they flinched. Lyra then threw herself on top of the Koffing, forcing him to eat the seed. That sounded so wrong.

"Sweet mother of Arceus you're insane!" cried out the Zubat. Lyra ignored him and continued to ram into the still sleeping ball of gas.

Meanwhile, I decided to focus on the bat, using Ember while trying to avoid damage to the rock. It worked out well, as I soon discovered that even after I stopped breathing fire all over him, he was still covered in small flames.

"Great job Dahlia! You burned him!" shouted Lyra, still ramming away at Koffing.

"Where I came from, burns didn't mean you were still on fire!" I shouted back. Zubat tried to shake it off.

"You are SO going to pay for that!" he hollered, before ramming himself into me. I got knocked back a little, but it surprisingly didn't hurt that much.

"Dahlia quick! Wave your tails in front of him!" Lyra shouted, looking tired from her repeated rammings.

Confused and startled from her outburst, I quickly did as she said. The Zubat stopped before ramming himself into me again.

"What in the name of Giratina are you doing?" he asked, before being hit from the side by Lyra.

"Wait, I was a distraction?"

"No, you made him drop his guard a little," Lyra replied, "and with his burn in effect…" Shortly after she said this, the Zubat collapsed.

"Lyra, I apologize for saying this, but I think you may be the tiniest bit of bat$#%& insane," I told her.

"Eh, it comes with the adrenaline," Lyra shrugged. "I'm calming down already and wow did I really just beat the crap out of those guys?" The Koffing groaned.

"Owowow, I feel like someone beat the crap out of me while I was sleeping…" The Zubat also awoke.

"Ugh, we got roughed up… badly." He shook it off, and started flying again. "Tch, fine. Here, take your stupid rock." With that, he threw it at Lyra, whom eagerly caught it.

"Woah-ho! Don't think you're special just because you beat us! Your victory was a fluke!" laughed the Koffing.

"Says the one who was sleeping all the while," I muttered under my breath.

"We'll remember this!" cried the Zubat. With that, they fled.

"Wait, you mean to tell me that they could go out that way just fine, but we can't?" I asked incredulously. Lyra ignored me in favor of her rock.

"My Relic Fragment! Oh sweet Arceus, I'm so glad nothing happened to it!" She then turned to me, her eyes filled with tears of joy. "This is all because you decided to help me… Thank you so much!"

I'll be perfectly honest, helping someone out felt pretty good. That it was really easy didn't damper it one bit. It was nice to be appreciated.

Later, we were on the beach, Lyra still thanking me all the while. She then set her rock on the ground. "I know you think this is just a stupid rock, but it really isn't! I call it the Relic Fragment because that's what it looks to me. Seriously, look at it!" I obligingly do so, wondering what the fuss about this. On top of the rock was a pattern, one difficult to describe. It looked pretty overall, and I understood why she called it the Relic Fragment.

"You see," Lyra went on, "I was always interested in legends and lore. I love it when I hear tales of the past! Don't you feel the same way?" She paused, waiting for my answer.

"Er, well… I always did like the story of how my ancestor fled from captivity."

"Just think! Hidden troves of treasures and strange relics… uncharted territories veiled in darkness… and new lands just waiting to be discovered! Places bound to be filled with gold and treasures!"

"So, you want to be rich?" I asked.

"Well, that's partly one reason, but I love the exploring part too! And history! Wouldn't it be amazing to make historic discoveries?"

"You seem pumped up about this."

"I am! It's everything I've dreamed of ever since I first hatched out of my egg! … Okay, so not that early, but close enough! So one day, I found the Relic Fragment. I was just so excited to see something like it! Something like that _has_ to have some sort of amazing origin!" I thought she was deluding herself, but I kept quiet for her sake. "That's why I really, really, _really_, want to join an exploration team. This fragment has to fit into something somewhere! And I want to know where!" She then looked depressed. "So, earlier I tried to join the nearby guild as an apprentice… but I chickened out."

"What happened to that adrenaline?" I asked.

"You'd chicken out too if a voice came out of nowhere saying what species you were!" Lyra shouted. Then she looked apologetic. "Sorry, I've tried so many times, and I could never muster the courage needed to get past the front gate. But, what about you Dahlia? What are you going to do?"

The question brought me back to reality. What was I going to do? I knew nothing of this world, and judging by what Lyra said earlier, there were bound to be more dangers.

"If you don't know, then can I ask you for another favor, please?" Lyra pleaded. "You see, I felt so brave when we were fighting those two, and it's because you were there…"

"Wait, are you asking me out?"

"No no no no! All I wanted was to ask if you'd like to be part of an exploration team with me. I'm certain that we can form a great exploration team together, what with your ability to roast Bug types and mine to take down Water types… So will you? Please?"

"You're asking me a lot, and you still owe me…" I told her, but I was actually thinking it over. This prospect seems to be the best in terms for my own survival. "Alright then, I'll join you." Her eyes brightened at this.

"Really? You'll really join the guild with me? Thank you so much! I promise not to let you down! It might be a little tough, but we're bound to get through it just fine! Woo hoo!"

And so, that was how I got dragged along into being the leader of an exploration team, Surprisingly enough, Lyra was fine with that, saying that a leader should be confident and that she's not.

Little did I know that this adventure would top everything that happened in my past life…

* * *

Beach Cave is here, and before you guys wonder why Dahlia didn't use Faint Attack, it's because neither she nor Lyra knew that she has it due to it being an Egg move. It'll show up later though. Please review and tell me if this is good!


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky.

* * *

The Guild

"Well, this is it. The moment of truth," Lyra said to herself. In front of us is a very strange pink tent, looking like some sort of malformed rabbit. In front of it was a grate covering up a hole in the ground. Lyra gulped and looked at me nervously. "Wigglytuff's guild. The place where exploration teams are born. I'll go first." With that, she stepped onto the grate.

"Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected!" cried a high, boyish voice, seemingly from nowhere.

"Whose footprint? Whose footprint?" yelled a louder, deeper voice.

"The footprint is Chikorita's! The footprint is Chikorita's!" the boyish voice shouted. Then we heard a muttered, "Probably the same Chikorita as before…"

"Wah!" Lyra cried, but surprisingly did not bolt for the hills. "N-no, gotta keep brave…"

"… You may ENTER! Someone's with you! So get that stranger to stand up THERE!" yelled the deeper voice.

"Jeez, way to get into your job…" I muttered as I stepped onto the grate.

"Pokémon detected! Pokémon detected!"

"Whose footprint? Whose footprint!"

"You guys already know I'm here, why are you doing that again?"

"QUIET!"

"The footprint is… The footprint is… Uh…" faltered the boyish voice.

"What's the matter!? Sentry! Sentry!? What's wrong sentry Diglett!?" shouted the loud voice.

"Umm… Er… Umm… The footprint is… Maybe Vulpix's! Maybe Vulpix's!" shouted what I presumed to be Diglett.

"WHAT!? MAYBE!?"

"But, it's not the sort of footprint you see around here every day… Vulpix's are said to be really posh, so…"

"UGH! That's pretty crummy! Checking the footprints of visiting Pokémon… that's YOUR job, isn't it Diglett?"

"Yeah but… I don't know what I don't know!"

Meanwhile, Lyra and I were listening along with great interest. "It's kind of understandable really. Vulpix are really posh. I'm glad that you're an exception." Rita told me.

"Isn't arguing on the job really immature though? After all, these guys sound like they're the security system…" I asked her.

"… Sorry to make you WAIT," came the deeper voice again. "Well it's TRUE that you don't see many Vulpix around these parts. But you don't SEEM to be bad. Ok, good enough! ENTER!" and with that, the metal bars covering the entrance to the tent rose, defying all sense of reality.

"… Good enough? Really? That's pretty bad for security, isn't it?" I groaned. Everything today was hurting my head. Lyra was shaking like a Chihuahua in the cold, or any other time really.

"Oh Arceus I'm so nervous! But… I'm glad that we're allowed in. My heart's pounding though… Well, no time to dwell on matters! Let's go!" With that, she dragged me into the tent, where we found a hatch leading underground.

We went down there, and saw a little room, with two billboards on opposite sides. Surrounding them were many Pokémon, like something that looked like a beaver, or a walking sunflower.

"Well, this is interesting," I muttered. "How many species of Pokémon live here again?"

"In this particular region, there are 493, but I think there might be more in other places." Seeing my jaw drop she added, "But don't worry! It's not too hard to remember what they look like at all! Anyways, look at all the ones here! I bet they're all explorers!"

"Excuse me!" a gentlemanly parrot like voice said. Behind us was a strange bird, its head looking like an eighth note, the rest of its plumage blue and yellow with bits of red, and the tail looking like a metronome. It hopped up to us, and judging by the voice I assumed it's he, and asked, "It was just you two that came in, correct?"

"Y-yes! I'm Lyra and this is Dahlia!" exclaimed Lyra.

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Chatot. I'm the Pokémon in the know around these parts!"

"Wait, is Chatot your actual name, or your species name?" I asked. He looked at me skeptically.

"Of course it's my species name, but I see no reason why I should give you my personal name. Anyways, I'm Guildmaster Wigglytuff's right-hand Pokémon! Now shoo! Leave the premises! We have no time for salespeople or silly surveys!" he dismissed us.

"But sir," I put in, "we're not doing anything of the sort. My friend and I want to be explorers! May you allow us to join?"

"Wh-what!? Exploration team!" He turned around trying to think. "Two children like them wanting to be part of an exploration team… it's rare. Especially given how hard the training is! Surely the steady stream of Pokémon that run away from our training program can attest to this!"

"Excuse me?" Lyra spoke up. "Is the training really that hard?" With a shock and a turn, Chatot faced us again.

"No no no no! It's not true in the slightest! Our training program for exploration teams is as easy as can be!" With that, he calmed down and smiled, his tail wagging back and forth like an actual metronome. "Well, well, well! I wish you had told me upfront that you wanted to be an exploration team! Hee-heeeee!"

"Lyra," I whispered, "didn't you say _part_ of an exploration team?" Lyra had a mischievous grin on her face.

"Well, I might have changed the truth a little," she whispered back.

"So, we're making our own, brand new, exploration team."

"Yup."

"Okay!" declared the parrot. "Let's get your team signed up right away! Follow me!" And so, he hopped off into another hatch, leading farther down. Of course, we followed him after some brief hesitation.

"He's got mood issues, doesn't he?" I muttered to myself.

Down below is an even bigger room. "This is the guild's second underground floor. This is the main workplace for apprentices. Team registration is this way. Come along." He led us to where a large door stood, and a larger still window.

"Wow! You can see outside down here!" Lyra proclaimed, her eyes sparkling again.

"Hush now!" snapped Chatot. "Our guild is built in the side of a cliff. It's only natural that you would be able to see outside."

"Oh."

"Now, in here is where the Guildmaster resides. On no account, and I repeat this, on NO account should you be discourteous to the Guildmaster," he lectured us. He then turned to the door. "Guildmaster! It's me, Chatot! I'm coming in!" He opened the door, and we went inside.

I'll be honest, I did not expect the following meeting to happen the way it did.

When the parrot led us inside, all we saw was the backside of a tall, rabbit like creature, which was very pink.

"Guildmaster! I present to you two Pokémon that wish to join our guild as apprentices!" Silence was his answer. "Guildmaster… um… Guildmaster?" Suddenly, the pink rabbit turned around.

"Hiya!" called out a deep, friendly voice. It, he I assume, had huge blue eyes and a creamy belly. On top of his head was a curl. In general, he looked adorable. "I'm Wigglytuff, the guild's Guildmaster! You want to form an exploration team! Then let's go for it! First, we must register your team's name! So, tell me your team's name please!"

"H-how did you say all that in one breath?" I asked awestruck. Then again, it's similar to Mia Fey and her complicated bluffs.

"Oh shoot! I can't believe I forgot this part… Um… you have any ideas Dahlia?" Lyra asked.

"W-why are you asking me!? This was completely out of the blue!"

I tried to think of something that suited us, which was hard seeing as the only thing we had in common was that we were both female. Wait a minute...

"How about Amazon?"

"What's that?" Lyra asked, looking confused.

I rolled my eyes. "Amazon, as in the female warriors from Greek mythology. I figured it fit us seeing as we're both female."

She shrugged. "At least it's better than what I came up with."

"Which is…?"

"Poképals."

"So, Amazon, is it?" Wigglytuff joined in. "All settled then! I'll register your team as Amazon." He didn't make a move. "Registering! Registering! All registered! YOOM-TAH!"

"… How was that registering?" I wondered out loud.

"The chairman of the Guild Administration is an Alakazam, so registering is as easy as communicating with him through telepathy." Chatot informed us. "As for that whole show… I have no idea."

"Congratulations! From now on, you're an official exploration team!" Wigglytuff joyfully exclaimed. I present you with this in commemoration!" He took out a box, hidden behind his back most likely, and gave it to us.

"A Pokémon Exploration Team Kit? Awesome!" Lyra went to the box and opened it. I went with her to see what was inside.

In the box were a badge, a bag, and a map. Rita's eyes sparkled with joy.

"Your eyes sparkle a lot, do they?"

"Yeah, most Pokémon can do that. But I'm just so happy right now, I could cry!"

"That's your Explorer Badge!" Wigglytuff explained." It's your official team identification! That there is a Wonder Map, which is a wonder of convenience! Finally, there's a Treasure Bag! It lets you carry lots of items you find in the dungeons. It has aura infused with it, so that the higher your rank goes, the more stuff you can carry! It's a very wonderful bag!"

"Wait, aura?"

"Look inside the bag, quick!" Wigglytuff shouted over my question.

Inside the bag were a red ribbon and a brown bandana.

"Awesome! That red ribbon is a Red Bow, it enhances all of your stats, and the brown bandana is a Power Band. It does what it implies." Lyra explained. "You should keep the Red Bow, since I think it'll look good on you while I get the Power Band since my power isn't really the highest…"

"You took out almost everything back in the cave by yourself!" I reminded her.

"Yeah, but that's because I was a higher level than them and had a type advantage…" Lyra sulked.

"Ahem," coughed Wigglytuff. "I'm glad you're really excited about all this, 'cause I am too! But remember, you're only apprentices right now, so train hard! And do your best!"

"We will! Right Dahlia?"

"Of course!"

With that, Lyra did some sort of pose, involving her pushing her chest upwards and smiling with her mouth open.

"… What are you doing?"

"It's a victory pose!"

Chatot led us out of the room and headed eastward, bringing us to our room. "This is where you'll stay during your time with us."

There was nothing much there, just two nests. "Yay! We get beds!" Lyra dove into one of the nests. "And it's fresh straw too! Not like the crunchy dry ones I use at home!"

"Erm, are you alright Lyra?" Chatot asked, looking concerned.

"Lyra said she was dirt poor. I think all of this must be like heaven to her," I replied.

"Well, sleep early tonight! We have a lot to do tomorrow! So rise early and start living up to our code!" Chatot told us.

"Yes sir! Oh my gosh this bed is so comfy!" Lyra started rolling around in her bed. I nonchalantly went to the other and curled up. She was right, this was comfy surprisingly enough.

Later, I was half asleep when Lyra whispered, "Hey Dahlia, are you awake?"

"I am now…" I grumbled.

"My heart was racing through all of today's events I thought it would literally pop out and I would die of happiness."

"Good to know." Actually, it wasn't. That was a terrible thing to picture.

"I thought Wigglytuff would be really scary, but he's super nice. I wonder how he became the Guildmaster though… He must be really good."

"Okay?"

"We're going to experience a lot of things tomorrow, but I'm not scared."

"You were scared earlier?"

"No. In fact, it's the other way around. I'm super excited about what we'll do tomorrow!"

"That's great, but can I go to sleep now?"

"Yeah, I'm feeling sleepy too. Good night Dahlia."

Unfortunately, thanks to Lyra waking me up, I was now wide awake. On the bright side, it led me to think about all that has happened.

"So," I thought," I was walking through Hell, met a creature named Arceus who called itself the Creator of the Universe (or _a _universe apparently), was given the chance to come back to life, turned into a five tailed red fox, met a green reptile thing with a leaf on top of its head, helped said thing get its rock back by beating up a ball of gas and an eyeless bat, and finally joined an exploration team with the reptile. This sounds like the plot of a bad fanfiction." I sighed again. "Oh well, at least I'm alive again." With that, I drifted off.

* * *

Meanwhile in San Fransisco

Phoenix Wright looked around him. In front of him was nothing but gray pastures. Behind him was the same gray pastures. Everywhere around was nothing but gray pastures. Also, for some reason, he was wearing his suit.

"Okay, couldn't my dreams take place in a more interesting place? Maybe with more sunlight?" he grumbled.

"I'm sorry, but this is the best I can do. All the other Dreamworlds were busy," a voice called back.

Phoenix, understandably startled, jumped and looked around. There was nothing to be seen. "Who's there?" he shouted, hoping his voice didn't betray his fear.

"Relax, it's not like I want to hurt you. I can't anyways, since I used the rest of my powers to bring an acquaintance of yours back to life," the voice answered. "And before you ask how I'm still talking to you, it's easier to send a voice than an entire body. You have phones for a reason, right?"

Phoenix was confused. "I swear I wasn't drinking last night..."

"You weren't."

"But, it's impossible to bring someone back from the dead, right?" He said this, though hope started to emerge. Hope that he tried to put down because this was a dream and he's probably going to either forget it in the morning or else be extremely depressed.

"Not unless you happen to be a Creator of a Universe. Anyways, it's not Mia Fey I brought back. Though, now I wish I was able to, that might have been fun."

Phoenix was now extremely confused. "So, who did you bring back?"

"Dahlia Hawthorne," the voice replied casually. "She had quite the grudge on you, and I figured that it'd be a waste if she wasn't able to act out on it."

"WHAT MADE YOU THINK THAT WAS A GOOD IDEA? Oh God, Maya's in trouble! Where is she? Oh God oh God oh God." Despair started to overcome Phoenix, even though the rational part of his brain told him to calm the heck down, seeing as this is just a dream.

"... That was way too funny. I'm so sorry, that was almost a complete lie," the voice laughed. "Relax, she's not out to get you. Actually, she's learned her lesson very well. I just figured, seeing as you're one of her 'victims', you should know what she's been up to."

"... What the hell."

"I'll choose to ignore that and enlighten you. I've essentially brought Dahlia back to life as an adorable, five-tailed, brown, fire breathing fox and put her in a world where she would have no chance to try to have her revenge on you. There, she befriended an adorable, green, plant wielding reptile with a leaf on its head, helped get her rock back, and became part of an Exploration Team. That's a very quick summary and should suffice. Now, I should get going now. It's nearly daytime, and you have somewhere you'll need to be. Have a good day."

Phoenix just stood there in the featureless, drab pastures.

"... What the bloody hell was that?"

* * *

And that's this chapter. I'll be honest, that last bit with Phoenix did not occur to me until my sister brought it up. For that, I thank her. Review if you like it or have something you'd like to address. Thank you!


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own anything except the first names of the Pokémon.

* * *

Introductions and the First Mission

It was rather nice being able to sleep for once. What was not nice was when someone rudely barges into your room and commands you to wake up.

Obviously, that was what happened.

"HEY! HEY THERE! RISE AND SHINE ROOKIES!" came the very loud noise that was the sentry. "Why are you all still ASLEEP!? WAKE UP! … Sweet mother of Arceus you're still ASLEEP after all THAT!? You must be worse than a SNORLAX! … C'mon, snap OUT of it! Look, I'm practically on my knees BEGGING for you two to wake up!"

I felt disturbed that he went to the point of begging us and my ears started to ring, so with a quiet yawn I opened my eyes and got up. Then I stared.

The creature, or Pokémon I suppose, that woke me up was purple, with round ears that looked better on a stereo. It also had a very large mouth with few teeth. Its expression was a cross between relief and annoyance.

"FINALLY one of you gets up! What's with HER though?" he asked, pointing to Lyra, her eyes now swirling.

"I think you knocked her out," I replied shortly.

The Pokémon groaned. "Darn it. There goes 50 Poké… Anyways, do you think you can drag her over? Seriously, if you guys don't show up, Guildmaster Wigglytuff's going to be FURIOUS! And BOY is he scary when mad. So MOVE IT!" His point made, he ran out.

I sighed. So, everything wasn't a dream after all. Oh well, it could be worse.

"Ugh… my poor ears," moaned Lyra, snapping me from my thoughts again. "What was that he said, something about waking up and Guildmaster Wigglytuff…?" With a groan, she got up. She shook her head, and turned to me. "Wait a minute… Oh shoot!" she cried. "We became apprentices yesterday, didn't we? So that means we're late! Oh no oh no oh no. Come on let's go!" We both ran out of there as fast as we could.

Thankfully, the place we were supposed to be is just outside the rooms. We saw nine Pokémon there, including Chatot. He and the purple Pokémon looked a tad bit annoyed.

"You're LATE!" the purple one shouted. Chatot turned to him.

"Shush now! You're being far too loud!" he reprimanded. He cast his gaze over the rest of us. "Well, it looks like everyone is finally here. Very well then, we'll begin the morning address." He turned to the door to Wigglytuff's room. "Guildmaster!" he called, "The guild is in full attendance!"

The door opened and the great pink rabbit himself walked out. Chatot looked pleased at this.

"Thank you Guildmaster! Please address the crew." There was silence as we waited for whatever he had to say. That silence was broken by a snore.

"Psst," a small brown Pokémon whispered to the purple one. "Guildmaster Wigglytuff never ceases to amaze me!"

"Yeah, you got that right," he whispered back. Frankly, I thought it was a miracle that he was able to whisper at all.

"Yup, looks like he's wide awake," a beaverlike Pokémon whispered to one that looked like a sunflower.

"Eek!" it replied. "His eyes are wide open, but he's fast asleep!"

Chatot looked unfazed and said, "Thank you sir! We all value your… words of wisdom."

"Is he trying to salvage his dignity?" Lyra whispered to me.

"If he is, he's failing," I answered. It's a sad state of affairs really.

"Ahem. Pokémon! Take our Guildmaster's words of wisdom to heart! Finally, let's not forget our morning cheers! All together now!"

At this, everyone excluding Lyra and I stood up straight. "A ONE! A TWO! A ONE TWO THREE! ONE! DON'T SHIRK WORK! TWO! RUN AWAY AND PAY! THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" they all cheered. I personally thought that that was the most stupid cheer I ever heard.

"Ok Pokémon! Before we get started, some introductions are in order!" Chatot shouted over the excitement. "Last night, two new apprentices joined our Guild! Those two, please come up to the front and introduce yourselves!" Lyra and I looked at each other and went up there.

"Um, hello. I'm Lyra the Chikorita," she announced to the guild. She then whispered to me, "Just put 'the Vulpix' at the end of your name, okay?"

"Erm, alright," I answered. "And I am Dahlia the Vulpix. It's a pleasure to meet all of you."

Chatot looked pleased at this. "All right then, everyone introduce yourselves to them! We need team spirit after all!"

"Aye!" answered all the others, saluting for whatever reason.

The first to introduce themself was the purple creature from earlier. "My name is Forte the Loudred! You'd BETTER not forget it! Also, it was thanks to you I lost 50 Poké! Thanks a lot!" I did not feel guilty for him one bit.

"Hi!" shouted the small brown Pokémon Forte was talking to earlier. "My name's Terrance Jr. the Diglett. Everyone either calls me Jr. or Diglett to differentiate from my dad who's also an apprentice here. Also, thanks for the 50 Poké!" They allowed gambling for kids?

The next to introduce was a Pokémon that looked similar to Terrance Jr. but with three heads. "Hello there good ladies! We are Terrance Sr. the Dugtrio. We hope to get along well with you two!" My only thoughts on these guys were that they freaked me out.

"Eek! You're so adorable!" cried the sunflower looking one. "I'm Sunhee the Sunflora! It's great that you guys are here!" Overactive sunflower, something you don't see every day. Then again, none of these guys you would see every day.

"Yup, hello there. My name's William the Bidoof the IV, but everyone here calls me either Bidoof or Bill. Nice to meet y'all," the beaver exclaimed. Simpleton is the perfect word for it.

"Hello there," a Pokémon looking like a wind chime whispered. "I'm Michaela the Chimecho. I'm the chef around here, and I hope my food will satisfy you." She reminds me of Iris for some reason. Most likely it was her meekness.

"Hey hey hey! You can't leave me out!" cried a lobster looking one. "I'm Phillip the Corphish! Finally I get to introduce myself!" I can't say much about him.

"… I'm Craig the Croagunk. It's nice to meet you," a purple frog looking Pokémon cut in. This guy creeped me out the most out of everyone.

"Hiya!" Wigglytuff burst in. "Sorry for sleeping like that! I'm Tenor the Wigglytuff! I really wish I could be no a first-name basis with everyone, but they're always so polite with calling me Guildmaster! I wonder why though…" He pondered over this before shrugging. "Oh well, it's what they want to call me. Oh, Chatot! Introduce yourself too!"

Chatot looked surprised at this order, but cleared his throat all the same. "Um, I'm Harold the Chatot. Work hard, and perhaps one day you'll be able to graduate and become fully fledged! I wish you good luck!"

By now, everyone was in a circle around us, and I started to feel a bit pressured. "It's wonderful to meet all of you, but can you back up a bit please?" I asked them. Immediately they took a step backwards, and Chatot cleared his throat again.

"Okay Pokémon! Enough is enough! Now, let's get to work!"

"HOORAY!" everyone shouted, and they dispersed. Chatot came up to me and Lyra.

"Okay, seeing as you two are fresh off the boat, I'll assign you a mission. Later on, once you get used to things, you can pick your own. Now, follow me!" He hopped up the ladder, and we followed.

On the second floor, he went to the bulletin board on the left. "Now, I assume you know what Mystery Dungeons are, correct?"

"Yup!" Lyra answered. "Dahlia and I went to one yesterday before we came here!"

"Well," Chatot blinked," that simplifies things. You are also aware that bad Pokémon are cropping up everywhere, yes?"

"Yup!" Lyra answered. "Well, at least I do. Dahlia's a foreigner. But, it's because of time being messed up, right?"

"Wait, how can time be messed up? That's practically impossible!" Chatot and Lyra looked at me unimpressed.

"Er, how foreign is she?" Chatot asked.

"Well…" she faltered.

I pondered on what to do here. Should I tell him the truth? Or make up some lie?

"She's actually a human, and not from here either," Lyra whispered to Chatot.

"Lyra. Did you seriously have to tell him that?"

"What? It's true."

"Wait, so you're a human, and you've somehow been turned into a Pokémon?" Chatot looked at me incredulously.

"Er, yes."

"… And the fact that you are not aware of two time traveling Pokémon means that you either have amnesia,"

"Which I don't, thank you."

"Or that you've come from another dimension. Seeing as you just said that you have no amnesia, that means you've come from another dimension. But how on earth did this happen…?" He looked puzzled before shaking his head. "I presume you want me to keep this a secret?"

I nodded in return. "Yes, please do so. I do not want an uproar about this. I'm actually surprised that you managed to keep quiet."

Chatot shrugged. "Well, I've heard rumors of another human turning into a Pokémon, but they were in a different continent. No matter. We've gone a bit off topic haven't we?"

"Yeah, we have. Sorry about that," Lyra apologized in embarrassment.

"It's alright. We can have further discussion later. Anyways, this is the Job Bulletin Board. Jobs from all over come here. Each job is essentially a request for an exploration team to do. This could range from finding an item, to rescuing a Pokémon, to escorting a Pokémon. We'll start you off with just finding an item," Chatot explained. He turned around and started scanning for a job. "Let's see… no we won't have you do that… Arceus forbid we let you do that one… oh! Here's one!" He plucked off the letter with his beak and gave it to Lyra. "I hope you don't mind it, but I highly doubt you can read footprint runes, and that's the main form of writing here," he told me.

"It's fine, I can learn later," I replied.

"Okay, so this letter, right? Okay… 'Hello! My name is Spring the Spoink! An outlaw ran off with my most prized possession! My precious pearl! That pearl is like life itself… to me! I just can't seem to settle down if that pearl isn't in its proper place atop my head! But I've heard that my pearl has been sighted! It's said to be on a rocky bluff. But this bluff is reported to be extremely unsafe. I could never go somewhere so frightening! Oh, friendly readers! Would you be so kind as to go to the bluff and get my pearl? I beg your help, exploration team members!'… From Spring the Spoink." Lyra stopped reading and looked concerned. "I know how that feels from yesterday. Alright, let's go to whatever this bluff is!"

"For your information," Chatot informed us, "this bluff is called the Drenched Bluff. Dahlia might have some trouble there, but you Lyra should have no trouble. Good luck!"

"Yessir! Let's go Dahlia!"

And so, we went off to our first mission, with no consent from me.

Joy.

* * *

I always thought it was weird that only you and your team members got names other than their species. So, I did this. I hope you guys liked this chapter! Read and Review please!


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